That’s all from me on today’s special version of Sportwatch, which saw the 2017 NRL finals series and match-ups decided after a spectacular fall from grace from the St George Illawarra Dragons, who led the competition in round seven, before crashing out in the final round after an upset loss to the Bulldogs. Here are the finals match-ups for next week:

Should be a fascinating semi-final week. Stay tuned for Matt Cleary’s NRL wrap-up tomorrow. Still think the Storm and Roosters are well ahead of their nearest rivals, with Storm surely favourites. Good to see the Cowboys scrape a finals spot are being so brave all season. Will also look forward to what could be a spiteful clash between the Sea Eagles and Panthers.

In netballing news, the New Zealand Ferns earlier took out a surprise Quad Series title after their convincing win against the Australian Diamonds, 57-47. After South Africa upset the English Roses, the Diamonds had only to win (or lose by less than 4 goals) to take out the title. They were hot favourites to do so, but the Ferns blitzed them from the first whistle, with an impressive defensive display from Jury, who took out player of the match. As solid as the Ferns were defensively, they were also potent in attack, with 35/41 to Selby-Rickit, and 17/18 to Bailey Mes at GA. The Diamonds will now be looking to settle their best side, and respective positions, in advance of the Constellation Cup, and Commonwealth Games.

Thanks for joining me today - and I hope you enjoyed this edition of Sportwatch. I’ll be back next week for finals. Can’t wait.

Canterbury Bulldogs beat St George Illawarra Dragons 26-20

Dragons get the ball back with just one minute to go - what can they make of it? Impressive effort - they make it all the way to 15m but ultimately come up short. Devastating for the Dragons, who led the competition in round seven, and are bundled out of contention in round 26. Dufty looks particularly heartbroken after the knock-on, while Graham looks thrilled with the unlikely Bulldogs victory, his last game for Canterbury before he crosses over to the Dragons next season. The Cowboys will be elated, as they now sneak into the finals in eighth.

Hopoate was the hero in the end for Canterbury - he had 198 metres run, a line break and a try to go with a try-saving intercept. Big game from David Klemmer for the Dogs who managed 214 run metres and 35 tackles. Lichaa, meanwhile continued his return to form with the winning try in the 73rd minute, and 37 tackles (a team-high). For the Dragons, Paul Vaughan and Jason Nightingale had the most run metres with 212 and 192 respectively. McInness (43) and Frizell (37) had the most tackles for the Dragons.

Marcelo Montoya of the Bulldogs celebrates after scoring a try with teammate Brenko Lee during the round 26 NRL match between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium. Photograph: Daniel Munoz/AAP

Six tackles for the Dragons - after the ball goes dead. Was almost a perfect kick from Mbye, but it just rolled over at the last minute. Nightingale almost makes it down the sideline again, but Lafai’s throw back on the inside is an awkward one and Dufty knocks it forward. Scrum to the Bulldogs.

The Dragons are backed into a corner, and the Bulldogs are full of running after the last try. Will this go to Golden Point? Not a good finish to the set from the Bulldogs, who were 5m out - but the kick goes into the ankles of the Dragons’ defence.

Lafai, however, turns the ball over just 15m out with a shocking pass - unbelievable stuff.

LICHAA! He’s over after a neat run out of dummy-half. Is that it for the Dragons’ finals hopes? Lichaa completes an incredible turnaround in form to take the Bulldogs into the lead, with only 6 or so minutes to go. And he’s injured too! He hobbles off - as does Tariq Sims for the Dragons. Drama!

Mbye converts - it could be all over for the Dragons.

Marcelo Montoya of the Bulldogs scores the previous Bulldogs try, evading Gareth Widdop of the Dragons during the round 26 NRL match between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium. Photograph: Daniel Munoz/AAP

Try-saver by Klemmer on Vaughan, but he gives away the penalty straight after. The Dragons point to the uprights, and look to extend their lead to 6. Widdop strikes it truly, and they’re a converted try ahead.

Josh Dugan looks to have scored a game-breaking try for the Dragons, but he’s held up in a brilliant tackle by Hopoate. That man again saves another try - this time with a hand in to stop Thompson and force a dropout. Tense scenes.

Widdop kicks the ball over the sideline, and it’s a scrum to the Dogs. Not sure the Dragons can afford to be so defensive - they still need to score again, you’d think. That said the Bulldogs suddenly look impotent in attack - and on cue, Montoya turns it over with a forward pass.

Dufty! He finally finds a way into the game, Lafai finds him on the inside after a dummy on the left, but it was a brilliant pass by Widdop that opened up the space. McGregor fist pumps and takes a deep breath.

“You have the feeling the Bulldogs need to score more points,” say our fabulous commentators. Hmmm. It does help when you’re behind.

MacDonald puts the ball down for the Dragons and the Bulldogs come again - they take a penalty from 10m out, and tap and go. Will they kick this time? They simply taken the tackle on the last two sets, but imagine they will go aggressive this time. They turn it over before they get to the fifth in a disappointing result. Great take by Montoya on the sideline, but it’s to no avail.

Dufty’s take is a good one on the run after a penetrating Frawley kick. He’s hardly been sighted, but is an important cog in the Dragons’ line-up - they’d do well to get him back in the game. Widdop takes another kick but Hopoate has no worries with the take. Morris gets the penalty against Dugan - Morris tries to tap and go, but is called back. Paul McGregor looks decidedly unimpressed - but the Bulldogs can’t get further than 5m out.

Great take, and resultant take-off by Hopoate, who finds the Dragons on the back foot. The Bulldogs make it to 10m out with one left. Hopoate takes the tackle, and the ball goes back to the Dragons. Bulldogs need to keep pressing - they look to be playing things safe. Montoya takes Widdop’s kick, and the Dogs go again.

Mistake in the play-the-ball by de Belin, which gifts the ball to the Bulldogs. De Belin argues he controlled it, but to no avail. Scrum for the Dogs. Stanley off for the Bulldogs with a hamstring, who joins Reynolds on the sideline. Bulldogs can’t complete the set, after Lichaa has the ball stipped, and Frawley knocks it on. Dragons ball.

NRL Cronulla Sharks beat Newcastle Knights 26-18

I haven’t had time to recap the Sharks v Knights game yet, so here’s the report from AAP.

Cronulla have work to do leading into enter next week’s elimination NRL final after slogging their way to an unconvincing 26-18 final-round win over Newcastle in the Hunter. Despite racing out to an 18-0 lead, the Sharks were pushed all the way on Sunday but eventually prevailed for a hard-fought second win in three weeks. Shane Flanagan’s fifth-placed side now await the winner of the St George-Illawarra and Canterbury game to decide whether they face Penrith or North Queensland in week one of the finals.

Sharks skipper Paul Gallen was easily his team’s best, warming up for the business end of the season with a trademark 249 metres and seven offloads. Knights forward Lachlan Fitzgibbon impressed with two tries, although he suffered a compound finger fracture in the second half and failed to return. His efforts also weren’t enough to stop the Knights from finishing with their third straight wooden spoon in front of a healthy crowd of 20,535 on their annual old boys day.

The visitors were leading by six when James Maloney slotted over a penalty in the 44th minute, before Gallen offloaded for Jesse Ramien to score on debut. Danny Levi responded in the 61st minute but that was as close as the Knights got as they finished the year with three straight defeats.

Cronulla were set for a cruisy afternoon when they shot out to an 18-0 lead inside 20 minutes. Valentine Holmes started the surge when he caught defenders napping out of dummy half in the sixth minute, before Chad Townsend sliced through some poor defence in the 16th. Jayden Brailey made it a three-try advantage four minutes later, but the Knights made it a contest with consecutive Fitzgibbon tries to finish the half. First the lanky second-rower hit a hole off a short ball from debutant Tyrone Amey, and then he cut the deficit to six when Danny Levi found him minutes before the break. His two tries lifted him to eight for the season - the most by a Knights forward since Danny Buderus in 2003.

AAP

Paul Gallen of the Sharks busts through the tackle of Jack Cogger during the Round 26 NRL match between the Newcastle Knights and the Cronulla Sharks at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle. Photograph: Darren Pateman/AAP

Well, as it stands the Cowboys are in the finals - with the Dragons putting on a disappointing first half display. They’re lucky to be as close as they are, helped by some Mbye inaccuracy and a multitude of penalties. Paul Vaughan still leads the way with run metres (106), to Klemmer’s 86 and de Belin’s 83. McInness and Elliott have 21 tackles respectively for their sides, while Lichaa, who has impressed, has 20. Reckon the Bulldogs will rue his departure.

If the Dragons can step up their intensity I think they take this one - hard to believe they’re only 2 points behind given how poorly they’ve played.

Jason Nightingale of the Dragons is tackled by Bulldogs defence during the round 26 NRL match between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium. Photograph: Daniel Munoz/AAP

No luck for Reynolds, who won’t take to the ground again. Penalty goes to the Dragons - 6-1 is the penalty count in favour of the Dragons, but it hasn’t helped them with the scoreline so far. Make that 7-1 against the Bulldogs - this time for Jackson holding on. Can the Dragons finally convert? YES - through Nightingale on the left, which brings them back into a game they’ve looked horrible out of. The set lacked intensity, and was lucky to end in a try.

They do it again! This time it’s Montoya, and the Bulldogs are on fire. Hopoate again produces a brilliant pass to find Montoya in the corner. The Dragons look shell-shocked. Mbye can’t convert - and his poor conversion rate continues.

Big metres so far from Paul Vaughan, who has 106, while Graham and Jackson have 48 each for the Bulldogs. Most tackles also goes to Vaughan, with 15, while McInness (14), Lichaa (14) and Tolman (14) follow. 58% possession to the Dragons, and a 79% conversion rate to just 62% for the Bulldogs.

Mann kicks a high one in hope, it’s picked up by Sims after Widdop spills the ball. The Bunker rules it backwards, which means the try stands - which goes to Thompson after the Sims pass. A try to the Dragons well against the run of play.

Penalty goes against David Klemmer who is called off-side - and isn’t happy. The Dragons have another six, and are only 10m out. Great intercept from Morris - who got his hand to it and completed the catch just before the ball hits the ground. Missed opportunity for St George, who look the inferior side so far.

Knock-on against Montoya who drops the Widdop kick - on the replay, it looks like the ball goes backwards. Unlucky - or a lucky break for the Dragons, whichever way you look at it. Good chase from Hopoate to knock the ball out of play for a dropout (although the ball has come off the hands of Dugan - which should force a restart). No call from the Bunker, though.

Bulldogs go short - but the kick is also short, and the Dragons regain possession.

Brilliant play by the Bulldogs which results in a Reynolds try - but Reynolds looks injured (is that his final play for the Dogs?) He looks very proppy. Great hands from Hopoate to set that one up, and a nice strike from Mbye follows.

Short dropout from the Bulldogs, which comes off - and Widdop’s gamble backfires. The Bulldogs make ground ground - right up to the 20, until Reynolds’s pass misfires, and the Dragons are back down the ground. Fumbling start from both sides.

We’re underway in this game against fierce rivals, and who would’ve thought James Graham would be leaving the club for the Dragons (on the same day as Josh Reynolds departs)? Emotional day for the Bulldogs, who lose two favourite sons.

Simple error from Tolman, who puts the ball down, and gifts the ball to the Dragons - who take the kick through Widdop and force a dropout. Aggressive play first up.

According to Andrew Johns, the Storm are near certainties for the title, with the Roosters the only team who might be able to challenge. The Storm became just the seventh salary-cap compliant team in history to finish a season with 20 wins with their 32-6 dismantling of Canberra on Saturday night. Melbourne have dropped just four games all season, including two without Billy Slater, Cameron Smith and Cooper Cronk during the State of Origin period. One of those Origin-affected losses came to the Roosters in golden point in Adelaide, and league great Johns said he believed they were the only team who could stop them winning the title.

“Best sporting club in Australia by a long way,” Johns told Nine’s Sunday Footy Show. “The only team I think can beat the Storm is the Roosters”. Final-round results have meant that both the Melbourne and the Roosters can play at home until the grand final if they win in the first week of finals. Victories over Parramatta and Brisbane respectively will also mean the Storm and Roosters cannot meet until the October 1 grand final.

Roosters legend Brad Fittler backed Johns’ sentiment, but said he had concerns over his former side’s discipline. “When the Roosters won the comp (in 2013), they were the most penalised side but I thought they had the attack to sometimes score the points,” he said. If you’re playing Melbourne in the grand final I don’t think you can give them too many set starts. The Roosters’ discipline, if it can improve this period, they are a real threat.”

They won’t be helped, however, by the report on Zane Tetevano, who was charged with a grade three high tackle in yesterday’s win over Gold Coast. Tetevano can miss three matches with an early guilty plea, but will face up to five matches on the sideline should the club challenge.

AAP

Mitchell Pearce is vital to the Roosters’ chances of challenging the Melbourne Storm for the NRL title. Photograph: Daniel Munoz/Getty Images

Not long - just under 13 minutes - until this game gets underway. This is a critical game for the Dragons, who need a win to sneak into September (and knock the North Queensland Cowboys out of the finals race). They don’t have a very good record against the Bulldogs, however, having lost 10 of their past 11 against Canterbury (including a 16-2 loss in Round 14). The Bulldogs have also had a decent run of late, with their two biggest scores of the year in their past two games. It will also be the final game in Bulldogs colours for their favourite son Josh Reynolds, and captain James Graham - who will join opponents the Dragons on a three-year deal next season. (Likewise, it’s the last game in blue and white for Sam Casino and Michael Lichaa - who has fired up in recent weeks). Meanwhile, Josh Dugan is back from his disciplinary break to give his side a boost.

Should be an intriguing contest. I’ll be keeping an eye on Tariq Sims after his game-breaking steal of a try last week (play of the year, no?)

Tariq Sims of the Dragons gestures to the crowd after scoring the match-winning try against the Penrith Panthers at Pepper Stadium. Photograph: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

Netball Quad Series New Zealand beat Australia 57-47

New Zealand are Quad Series champions! 2012 (in the Constellation Cup) was the last time the New Zealanders beat the Australians in a series - so this is a big win for the Ferns. They’ll take huge amounts of confidence into the Commonwealth Games after this victory. Disappointing day for the Diamonds, but all credit must go to the Silver Ferns, who were incredibly impressive. The Australians simply had no answer for Selby-Rickit, who scored 35/41, while Bailey Mes was critical in GA with 17/18. Crampton and Francois had 16 and 15 goal assists respectively, with some quick and impressive transition play. Jury, meanwhile was impressive in defence, and takes out player of the match.

For the Diamonds, Bassett finished with 22/24, while Philip had 11/12 and Thwaites 10/11. Liz Watson had 11 goal assists and looked damaging once she came on, with 27 feeds.

Katrina Grant, the Ferns captain, says she’s proud of the team after their earlier loss to England - she says everyone else wrote the Ferns off, but the team were confident in their abilities, and they look forward to their next meeting with the Diamonds at the Constellation Cup. Liz Ellis, meanwhile, says the Diamonds would have been unsettled after so many personnel and position changes; she claims they were correct, but ‘should have happened much earlier in the game’.